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Dr. Cooper weaves a maker’s narrative from low-level nanomaterials up through full production systems. Curiosity captured him early and his pursuits generally follow the path of greatest knowledge growth. As comfortable rebuilding a small block as he is advocating for science literacy in youth, AJ is always exploring.

Preferring the term ‘nanoscience’ to ‘nanotechnology’, AJ earned a PhD and MS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Virginia along with a BS in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Tech. Since reviving a $2 million research program during his first internship, he has consulted and designed products for DOD, emergency coach builders, and factory race teams. During his graduate tenure, he created a new method of ultrapure silicon-organic chemistry in ultra-high vacuum. Never one to accept can’t as an answer, he built an electro-optic time domain reflectometer just to support one section of his research.

AJ’s current interests are in micro/nanofabrication, Gallium nitride on silicon electronics, MEMS, smart agriculture, as well as autonomous and embedded systems.